All of the hullabaloo in the winter beer season is paid to potent lagers and warming ales. That is all well and good, but there remains a place for sprightly refreshing brews even at the height of the winter chill. We are proud to release today two such examples of thirst-quenching winter beer refreshment: Temple Garden Yuzu Wit and Winter Wit.

New Baird Beer Seasonal Releases:
*Temple Garden Yuzu Wit (5%):

This fruit-infused Belgian-style witbier is the happy result of an unfortunate situation: we couldn’t get our hands on enough fresh yuzu fruit to brew this year’s Temple Garden Yuzu Ale (one of the annual mainstays of our fruit beer brewing). We decided to use what little yuzu fruit we did get in such a way as to maximize its impact — as a dry-peel component in a wonderfully fruity and effervescent wheat-based witbier. And boy does the yuzu aroma shine bright! It is complemented perfectly by the subtle aromatics provided by just a pinch of sansho seed.

Temple Garden Yuzu Wit is available for immediate release in kegs ONLY.

*Winter Wit (6%):

Witbier is a Belgian-style wheat ale brewed with a high proportion of un-malted wheat from which it derives a whitish color. Typically it is a light, tart, crisp and refreshing ale of low-alcohol strength. Baird Winter Wit is a more robust cold-season take on this classic Belgian beer style.

Our grist is a blend of un-malted and malted wheat, floor-malted Pilsner and Maris Otter, and a touch of Caragold (contrbuting body and color). The hopping is light and performed with a combination of European varieties: Tradition, Hersbrucker, Styrian Golding. The magic occurs when this ingredient combination is then fermented with our Belgian yeast strain. The result is a pleasantly tart and spicy, sprightly carbonated ale with a hazy white-gold hue upon which sits a billowing head of virgin-white foam. The warmth comes in the finish, just enough to furbish without interfering with the refreshment. Winter has never tasted so glorious!

Winter Wit is available for immediate release in kegs as well as bottles (360 ml). You can enjoy both Temple Garden Yuzu Wit and Winter Wit fresh on draught at all of the Baird Taproom pubs beginning today (Thursday, February 20).

Sugii Brewery has been brewing this particular brand for some time and it is noteworthy for more than reason.
First of all it is a Yamahai, a variety of sake than many breweries conscientiously ignore as it is difficult to master its natural fermentation.
Interestingly enough “Shizuoka Yamahai” is tarting to get some deserved attention from the rest of Japan as many Shizuoka breweries have made it their challeng to tackle it.
And the results are certainly striking!

Another interesting aspect is that the rice is Shizuoka-grown Hoamrefuji, which is steadily earning its lettres de noblesse (fame)!

Overall: Although obviously conceived to be drunk with food, it is a thoroughly enjoyable sake on its own with intriguing facets enticing you to the next cup and the nest one beyoond.
A very dangerous sake in a sense as you don’t tire of it and feel obliged to discover a new facet!
A challenge, and a successful one at that be it on the brewer’s side or the drinker’s!

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day and we have crafted the perfect beer to celebrate this occasion of sweetheart love: Love Potion Lager.

New Seasonal Baird Beer Release:
*Love Potion Lager (5.5%):

Love Potion Lager is our version of a German-style Schwarzbier: a dark but delicately smooth bottom-fermented beer. The dark color stems from moderate additions of roasted malt to the grist which lend a subtle sweet-chocolate flavor. A long six-month lagering period has contributed to a clean and balanced roundness of character that is irresistibly seductive. Just a gentle kiss of hop flavor and bitterness in the finish will leave you in an expressive mood of tender love and heartfelt affection for that special someone.

Love Potion Lager is available in both kegs and bottles (360 ml) for immediate shipment from our Numazu brewery. It begins pouring from the taps of our Baird Taproom pubs on Valentine’s Day, Friday, February 14.

I have always been wondering at the wisdom of creating a honjonzo.
After all it is certainly more difficult than making a straight junami as you have to blend the aforementioned junmai with pure sake alcohol.
In fact many a brew master has agreed it is a lot of work for making a sake sold at a lower price…
Mind you I do not complain, especially considering the extravagant rice millage practiced by Shizdaizumi Brewery in Fujieda City!

Overall: An intriguing and elegant sake.
Eminently enjoyable on its own although obviously conceived to accompany food.
I actually made a point to drink it with dates and sweet biscuits and discovered that its accentuated dryness beautifully married with the sweetness of the cakes!
It just proves you ind you I could drink that particular brew all night long!ought to drink any sake in many combinations as far as food is concerned.
Mind you, I could drink that particular brew all night long!

Overall: Very intriguing junmai genshu.
Superbly marries with food, especially izakaya heavy fare and oden.
Very pleasant to drink in spite of high alcohol contents.
Another solid and so reliable sake so typical of Takashima Brewery’s savoir-faire!

We are proud, for the ninth consecutive year, to announce the release of a most special winter-warmer ale: Ganko Oyaji Barley Wine.

Baird Beer Seasonal Release:

*Ganko Oyaji Barley Wine 2014 (ABV 10%):

The first batch of Ganko Oyaji Barley Wine was brewed back in Summer 2004 and released in February 2005. We have repeated this ‘brew-it-in-summer-for-release-next-winter’ schedule for Ganko Oyaji every year as it allows ample time for post-packaged secondary fermentation and flavor maturation — critical to beers of extremely high original gravity and alcohol strength.

Ganko Oyaji 2014 is brewed with an all-English malt bill that includes floor-malted Marris Otter, Rye, Amber and a touch of Roast Barley. A Kettle addition of Japanese red cane (akato) sugar contributes extra food for yeast fermentation without adding more in the way of body and sweetness — there is plenty of both of those in this high original gravity ale (23.9 Plato). The malt sweetness is balanced beautifully by generous additions (90 calculated IBUs) of five American-grown hop varieties: Millenium, Nugget, Sorachi Ace, Chinook and Simcoe. As always, we krausen (blending of a portion of peak fermentation beer into the beer destined for packaging) at packaging to produce a robust secondary fermentation and totally natural carbonation.

Ganko Oyaji is an ideal after-dinner or before-bed restorative. It promises to condition nicely for months and years to come. It is available for immediate shipment (bottles and kegs) to Baird Beer retailers throughout Japan. It begins pouring from the taps of Baird Taproom pubs on Saturday, February 1.